Thomas Winniffe (1576–1654) was an English churchman, theBishop of Lincoln from 1642 to 1646.
He was born and baptised atSherborne,Dorset, in 1576, the son of John Winniffe (1540?-1630), who was buried on 28 September 1630 inLambourne church,Essex. He was educated atSherborne[1] and matriculated fromExeter College, Oxford, on 22 Feb. 1594, and elected fellow in 1595; he graduated B.A. on 12 July 1598, M.A. on 17 May 1601, B.D. on 27 March 1610, and D.D. on 5 July 1610. In August 1605 he was one of those who disputed in moral philosophy before James I, his queenAnne of Denmark, andHenry Frederick, Prince of Wales on the occasion of their visit to Oxford.[2]
On 5 May 1608 he was admitted to the rectory ofWillingale Doe, Essex, and on 15 June following to that of Lambourne in the same county, and on 30 June 1609 he resigned his fellowship at Exeter, having livings above the statutable value.[2]
After Prince Henry's death Winniffe became chaplain toPrince Charles. However, on 7 April 1622, when the Spaniards were overrunning theElectorate of the Palatinate, Winniffe preached a sermon denouncingGondomar, and comparingSpinola with the devil. Sent to theTower of London, Winniffe repented and appealed to the Spanish and imperial ambassadors, whose intercession caused his release a few days later. On 17 September 1624 he was nominateddean of Gloucester, and was installed on 10 November. He remained chaplain to Charles after his accession, and on 8 April 1631 was nominateddean of St Paul's in succession toJohn Donne, who bequeathed him a picture; he was also one of the three to whom Donne is said to have left his religious manuscripts. The canons elected Winniffe dean of St Paul's on 18 April; on 15 March 1634 he took the oath as an ecclesiastical commissioner.[2]
When BishopJohn Williams was promoted from Bishop of Lincoln to Archbishop of York on 4 December 1641, Winniffe was selected to succeed him. Although the King supposedly thereby intended to gratify parliament (on the ground of Winniffe's supposed Puritan tendencies), on 30 DecemberFrancis Rous moved in the House of Commons for the postponement of Winniffe's consecration. A mob also destroyed Winniffe's house in Westminster, although its leader, Sir Richard Wiseman, was killed. Nonetheless, Winniffe was elected on 5 January 1642, and consecrated on 6 February; he retained the deanery of St Paul's, but resigned his livings in Essex.[2]
The outbreak of theFirst English Civil War disturbed his possession of his see, though according to his own account he was always atBuckden Palace and submitted to parliamentary ordinances. He was deprived of his see by Parliament on 9 October 1646, as episcopacy was abolished for the duration of theCommonwealth and theProtectorate.[3][4] In November 1646, all bishops' lands were vested in trustees for the benefit of the commonwealth, and Winniffe retired to Lambourne. Early in 1654, on his petition toOliver Cromwell, his arrears were paid up to November 1646. During his retirement, Winniffe assistedBrian Walton in the preparation of the 'Polyglot Bible.'
Winniffe died at Lambourne on 29 September 1654, and was buried within the altar-rails of the church. He was unmarried, and gave theadvowson of Lambourne, which he had purchased, to his nephew,Peter Mews. His episcopate at Lincoln remained vacant for six years, until the election ofRobert Sanderson in 1660.[2]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Pollard, Albert Frederick (1885–1900). "Winniffe, Thomas".Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co.| Church of England titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Bishop of Lincoln 1642–1646 | Succeeded by Vacancy, thenRobert Sanderson in 1660 |
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